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Top 5 essential tips to build an engaging HR website

How often do people visit a Human Resources (HR) or Recruitment website? Everyone at some stage of their professional lives have been in touch with a HR professional. This makes the HR industry a high involvement industry and as a result of this, the potential of the business and the demand for it is massive. In spite of the stakes being so high, it is surprising that not many HR companies / departments focus on creating an optimised HR friendly website.

It is important to define the clear goals of the company before finalising key elements of the website like content, structure & design. Here are some tips on creating engaging HR websites.

Editor’s note – The recommendations below are meant for a HR company/ agency who deal with multiple industries. The strategy for a HR company who only deal with specific industries will differ.

1) Keep it simple – The principle of a website being very easy to read, applies most to industries like HR. This is because visitors are expected be from all kinds of different occupational backgrounds and not everyone is technologically savvy. An IT professional may find it easier to navigate through the website as compared to a Construction Supervisor. To ensure that the company does not lose out on talent, it’s best to keep the navigation & content on the website simple to understand.

For example – Use popular page/tab names which visitor are used to, instead of creating new ones which may confuse them. They include – About us, contact us, Current openings, job alerts and FAQ’s

Also, a HR website is normally content heavy and to ensure that the information is clearly legible, it is recommended to use minimum colours & black text on a white background. The pages can be creatively designed using 1 or 2 colours but that should be done sparingly.

Examples of popular HR websites using minimum colours –

2) Add a call to action – To make the most of the company’s digital strategy, your website needs all the visitors to action a specific task. That could include call the company, apply for a job, share their CV, register for a job alert and share job openings with the company. To help visitors share these details, a clear call to action needs to be added on every page. Without a call to action, visitors may not be sure if they are expected to share the information. And if they do not go ahead with the intended action, it becomes a lost opportunity for the business.

Examples of a strong call to action – Register your details now, set a job alert, Upload your CV, Apply now, Contact us today and Speak to us for a quote.

3) Keep it relevant – Since the website is going to cater to visitors from various industries & requirements, it is important to keep the content relevant. If the information is not relevant, the visitors may be confused and worse, decide to leave the website. It’s a good idea to break down the information into various categories based on an industry or type of service that the company provides. Job openings should be listed based on location, job category & function.

For Example – The section for job seekers & clients should be kept different. Any information that relates to the services which the HR Company can provide to clients, should be in the clients section. There is no point adding that information in the job seekers section as it will not be relevant.

4) Keep you branding consistent – Social media has become an important tool for HR, especially with business oriented social networking services like LinkedIn becoming popular. Many HR professionals effectively use various social media accounts to share information of the job openings with their network. It is very important to have your company branding consistent across all platforms. As it will add credibility to the company profile page & also help your audience identify your brand on various mediums.

Additionally, the social networks these days also offer a great deal of functionality to support your website. Candidates can choose to apply for jobs, share openings with their friends or even get in touch instantly with your team. Keeping this in mind, it’s a good idea to add an extension of your company’s social media profiles on the website. The recommended social media extensions which should be added on a HR website include facebook, twitter, Instagram, google +, LinkedIn and Pinterest*.

*If you add an extension, ensure the social media profiles are updated regularly. If you are not updating it regularly, the extensions should be deleted.

5) Make it mobile responsive – 89% of all Aussies own a smartphone and over 70% of them go online through their phones*. According to Google, an average person checks their phone 150 times a day. So, why is this relevant to the HR industry?

With the increasing popularity of smartphones and the amount of time people spend on them, majority of candidates either search for jobs or apply for them through their smartphones. Therefore, having a mobile responsive website is essential for a HR business. It is also important to keep in mind that the website is easy to navigate from all kinds of smart phones and devices. For example – apple, android & windows.

* Source: ACMA Australian Digital Lives Report 2014

So, just a quick recap of the top 5 things to keep in mind before building your HR website.

Keep it simple, add a call to action, keep it relevant, keep the branding consistent and make it mobile responsive!

Looking to build an engaging HR website? Consult the experts in the field – Netable are Google Partners & has over 14 years of experience in building engaging websites.

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